Toys and other objects which are fabricated from porous materials such as foamed plastics have certain advantages: they are light in weight, owing to their low density; and they are safe for children, owing to their compressibility. Such lightness, safety and compressibility makes these materials especially suitable for bouncing balls, flying toys such as gliders, and throw-toys such as darts. But these materials have not generally produced very good results when used for other types of toys and other products.
In the past it has been difficult or impossible to fabricate such materials in a form which is acceptable to the marketplace. Foam materials are usually supplied in sheet form, making it difficult to fabricate them into objects of non-uniform thickness. By comparison, injection-molded plastic objects can be made in a wide variety of shapes of non-uniform thickness. Injection molding also has been favored for the inclusion of molded-in-place inserts of various types. Historically, foam materials have not held such inserts well.
In addition, the toy marketplace favors objects with a shiny surface, preferably decorated with a variety of bright colors. Foam materials have heretofore had a dull, porous surface which is unsuitable for finishing with brightly colored paints, silk screens, tampo printing and decals. Such surfaces are also unsuitable for the molding of fine surface detail, which lends a desirable realism to toy objects. Another problem encountered with foam objects of the prior art is their vulnerability to tearing because of the softness of the surface layer.
The present invention, however, contemplates the molding of toys and other objects from foam materials, yet provides such objects with a tough, smooth, shiny surface which is similar to that which results from insert molding. As a result, the molded foam objects of this invention As combine foam's advantages of lightness, safety and compressibility with a superior ability to hold molded-in-place inserts and to accept various types of surface decorations, preferably brightly colored, plus fine surface detail. The molded foam objects of the invention are also more durable, because the tough surface layer resists tearing.